Jaw gauge for dental treatment



July 2, 1946. K HQRVAT 2,493,355

JAW GAUGE FOR DENTAL TREATMENT" Filed April 24, 1944 INVENTOR. Ia/m an Hora-a! Patented July 2, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JAW GAUGE FOR DENTAL TREATMENT Kalman Horvat, New York, N. Y.

Application April 24, 1944, Serial No. 532,460

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to dental appliances and, more specifically, to a new and improved mechanical device for controlling the movement of the lower jaw in dental treatment.

The main object of the present invention is the provision of a device which enables the dentist to prevent the patient from misdirecting his or her jaw when taking the bite. For this purpose the device, which will be described in detail hereinafter, is adapted to be placed snugly over the patients jaw while the jaw is in closed position; then the patient is instructed to open his mouth and the bite block is placed into his mouth, whereafter the patient is instructed to close his mouth, thereby the lower jaw being embraced by the device so that the jaw cannot be moved forward or sideways but is bound to fall back into the original position. In this way the device not only prevents the patient from misdirecting his lower jaw, but an effort on the side of the patient to do so would be painful due to some roughages embracing the chin.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described by means of which a dentist, when he has finished a new denture, bridge, or other orthodontia appliance, can easily register the exact angle ofthe jaw which indicates the correct position of the jaw, so that later on the dentist can compare the jaw position with the jaw angle or position ori inally registered; it is a well known fact in dental practice that the position of the jaw changes more or less during a period of years. Such changes result from the natural process of jaw protrusion or the like and may cause the illfit of a denture or bridge which, when new, fitted perfectly. In such cases it is important that the dentist can prove that the illfit of the denture or the like is not due to any negligence on his part.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described which is light in weight, simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, but durable and well adapted for the various purposes stated above. I

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a preferred embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Similar numeral refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The device consists primarily of four arms l, 2, 3 and 4, which are pivotally jointed in parallelogram form by means of screws 5, 6, 1 and 8 push the jaw too far forward or sideways.

and which are adapted to embrace the jaw and the neck of a patient. In the sectional view Fig. 2, the device is shown as embracing the lower portion (jaw and neck) of a head 9, which is indicated in dash-and-dotted lines. In Fig. 1 the device is shown in full lines in the postion which it assumes when embracing the jaw and neck of head 9, and it is also shown in dash-and-dotted lines in the position which it substantially assumes while it is being shifted over the head 9. The inner edges of the arms I and 2, in the vicinity of screw 6, are preferably curved at It! so as to conform with the shape of the chin; and the arms 3 and 4 are also curved at ll so as to conform with the rear portion of the neck.

A hand [2 is afiixed to one of the arms (to arm I in the present instance); and the adjoining arm 3 is provided with a scale [4, the graduation of which is adapted to indicate-in cooperation with hand I2-the angle formed by a chin engaging arm I and by the adjoining neck engaging arm 3. This angle can be registered by the dentist as evidence for the normal position of the jaw when a new denture or the like is delivered.

In order to retain frictionally the arms I, 2, 3 and i in adjusted position around the head of the patient, at least two of the screws 5, 6, 7 and 8 are provided with washers 2B and with thumb nuts 21 or with wing nuts 22. It is normally sufficient to tighten only two opposite screws for retaining the device in adjusted position. To enable the dentist to prevent more eficiently the patient from misdirecting his or her jaw when taking the bite, one or more rough, adjustable edges, socalled roughages, may be provided at those portions of the device which engage the chin and/or the neck of the patient, so that a slight discomfort will warn the patient when he attempts to Thus the device embracing the patients jaw when takin the bite, will allow him to open his mouth, but will force him to assume the correct jaw position when closing the month, since any shifting of the jaw forward, or to either side is prevented by the device.

I prefer to carry out this feature of the invention in the manner shown in the drawing, where it will be seen that a plate 30 having a rough edge 3! and a slot 32 is adjustably secured to one of the arms (to arm 2 in the instance shown) by means of a screw 33, which is extended through slot 32 and through a slot 34 in arm 2. Washers 20 and a Wing nut 22 allow a frictional retaining of plate 30 after it has been properly adjusted relative to arm 2. While ordinarily one rough edge plate 30 will be suilicient, it will be obvious that additional rough edge plates (not shown) can also be provided, for instance on arm I as well as on arms 3 and 4, so that such rough edge plates will act not only upon both sides of the chin but also upon the. patients neck.

While there has been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a single modificatiom'it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and-details of the device illustrated and in its operationmay;

be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the-invention. It.is the intention, therefore, to be limited-only as indicated by the scope of the following claim.

Having thus described my invention, What I 'claimand desire'to secureiby LettersPatent'in the United'States is:

A- mechanicaldevice for controlling'themovemerit of the lower jaw inidentaltreatment comprising'four arms'jointed in parallelogram form 4 and adapted to embrace the jaw and the neck of a patient; screws extended through the adjoining ends of each two arms; thumb nuts engaging at least two opposite screws for irictionally retaining said arms in adjusted position; two of said arms in the vicinity of the connecting screw being shaped so as to conform substantially with the shape of the chin and the two other arms in the vicinityof the oppositeiscrew being shaped seas to conform: substantially with thezshape of the rear portion of the neck; and a plate having a rough edge being adjustably secured to one of the chin engaging arms so that said rough edge causes a slight discomfort to the patient if he attempts to misdirect his jaw; one of said arms being shaped as a half-circular disk which is provided with'a graduated scale and whose straight edge:is-at the inner side of the parallelogram formed by said arms and that arm which is jointed to :said' half circular shaped arm. being provided with a hand adapted to indicate on' said scale the angle which is formed 'by said twolast mentioned arms, all substantially as described.

"KALMAN HO'RVAT. 

